A Canadian Harvest Feast

Fall is a wonderful time to gather with family and friends to savour the bounty of the season.

We are so fortunate in the Markham area to be surrounded by wonderful farmer's markets chock full of fruits and vegetables fresh from the fields of Ontario.

Get out into the fresh air and savour!

Shopping cart brimming with local goodies. Ready to start cooking!

Every fall we like to do a cooking course at the Queensbridge Mill showcasing our local produce.
This year we created a "Canadian Harvest Feast". Our theme was fresh from the fields of Ontario. We loved staging our own farmer's market with all the beautiful fruits and vegetables downstairs in our seminar room.

It's fun to create a still life compostion using real fruits and veggies. The colours, textures and shapes as well as the delicious scents really appeal to all our sences.

We were thrilled to have Evan MacDonald, owner of the Village Grocer, as our star of the event.

Our menu was designed around his succulent Roast of Pork which was stuffed with prunes.

He began by demonstrating how to carve up the side of the pork loin to get the roast. Needless to say, we were mesmerized by Evan's carving skills.

Once stuffed with the prunes and tied, he rubbed the sides with apple butter.

Then salt and peppered.

Ready for the oven. Simple but sure to please the most discerning of palates.

Carved and ready to be served to our awaiting Queen Bees! Moist and juicy. Evan carries only the finest quality of meat. His reputation is legendary outside our community with people making the drive from downtown Toronto to do their shopping at The Village Grocer. We feel blessed to have him so close to us.

To complement Evan's roast of pork, we served a Leek and Root Vegetable Gratin which celebrated a cornucopia of our favourite roots: potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, leeks and enhanced with fresh herbs and Parmesan cheese.

Evan's favourite side to his pork roast is a pan of roasted parsnips and butternut squash. These two vegetables maintain their integrity of flavours as they roast together in the oven. You can buy the butternut squash already sliced "french fry style" at The Village Grocer which makes this dish a snap to prepare.

We had an abundant gathering of 27 Queen Bees at our Canadian Harvest Feast with Evan.

Many Queen Bees are related to each other and make it a point to come lunch, learn and laugh with us.

Needless to say, our Queen Bees have become like family to us!

Another fun day of celebrating food with friends. Taking home the recipes to share with the family to create their own Canadian Harvest Feast---Fresh from the fields of Ontario!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Whittamore's Farm

Looking for a fun day in the country this fall? We highly recommend a visit to Whittamore's Farm located at 8100 Steeles Avenue, nestled beside the Rouge River Valley in Markham. This 220 acre farm has been in the Whittamore family since 1804 and continues to provide fresh fruits and vegetables to the public. Over the years, the farm has expanded and is now one of the largest pick-your-own and farm markets in Ontario. Whittamore's Fun Farm Yard is open everyday and there's lots for the family to see and do, including farm animals, mazes, pedal tractor track, climbers, slides and so much more.

Looking for the perfect pumpkin? Whittamore's Pumpkinland starts the last weekend in September and goes until the end of October. Their "Spooktacular Boo Bash" is held this year on Saturday, October 31st. Visit their website: http://www.whittamoresfarm.com/ for more information.

Fresh from the orchard, Whittamore's offers a selection of apples for your eating and baking pleasure.

Nana Chadwick believed that Northern Spy apples made the best apple pie and she did make the best apple pie and crumbles!

Whittamore's Farm also carries a wide range of their own private label of jams and condiments.

Great pick-me-ups to enhance any meal. They also make wonderful hostess gifts if you are not the person preparing your Thanksgiving dinner.

There are lots of freshly baked pies, tarts and other goodies. Mmm, it's not easy

making a decision.....but it is getting close to Thanksgiving so an obvious choice would be...

Whittamore's sell their own pumpkin pie based on an old family recipe. It is sure to delight family and friends at your Thanksgiving gathering. If you love to bake you own, the Whittamore family is pleased to share their treasured recipe with you:

Whittamores's Pumpkin Pie Recipe

Ingredients:

2 Eggs

3 cups prepared Pumpkin Mash/Puree

1 cup of packed Brown Sugar

2 tsp. McCormick's Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

1/2 tsp. Salt

3/4 cup Heavy Cream (18%)

1 - 9 inch unbaked Pie Shell (home made or pre-prepared and frozen)

Preparation:

Beat eggs lightly in medium bowl. Add pumpkin, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and salt. Stir until well combined. Blend in cream. Pour filling in pie shell. Bake at 425F for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350F and continue baking 30-35 minutes longer or until knife inserted in centre comes out clean. Cool.

Serve with whipped cream. Simply fabulous!

Just in time for Thanksgiving, the Whittamores were recently invited by Breakfast Television to demonstrate making their famous Pumpkin Pie live on TV! It looked easy but if baking is not your thing, we encourage you to drop by the Farm and pick up your freshly baked pie(s) as well as all the fixings for your Fall Feast. It's a fun adventure! You will not be disappointed as there is lots to see, do and EAT.

Bee inspired!

Welcome Autumn

The beauty of autumn surrounds us. We just have to look outside to observe the splendour of the season as the leaves transform the landscape into a vivid kaleidoscope of brillant colours.

We invite you to take advantage of the beautiful plants, pumpkins and gourds available to create a warm Harvest welcome at your front door!

To celebrate the magnificence of the fall season, we invited Greg Nicholson of the Village Grocer to give us some tips on how to create "AUTUMN INSIDE AND OUT"! We learned how to transform our "end of summer" gardens and urns as well as some simple ideas for seasonal centrepieces.

Greg showed us how to create a Fall inspired fresh floral arrangment. Using a shallow glass bowl, he filled the bottom with water and river stone. By simply using clear tape he created a criss-cross pattern to form a structure to hold the flowers in place. He then added the florals, starting with the sunflowers to build the arrangement. Baby cabbages were added in to add further drama.

Greg continued to add in flowers in different colours and shapes.

Voila! It's done! Simply stunning.

Next, Greg demonstrated a simple-to-make Fall centrepiece using a lined basket.

Greg filled the basket with different plants of different heights, colours and textures.

Ready to display on the table inside or outside.

Another masterpiece by Greg.

Makes a lovely hanging wall basket!

Greg dressed up a ghost pumpkin and a green squash. Great to add a little whimsical fun to your outdoor garden or buffet table. Made of tin, they can be purchased at the Village Grocer.

At any gathering at the Mill, we always serve some freshments which celebrate the theme of the event. In this case it was: "PUMPKINS". We delighted the palates of our attendees with The Village Grocer's decadent Pumpkin Cheese cake which melted in the mouth. At this time of year, the bakery at the Village Grocer features all sorts of delectable goodies made of pumpkins: scones, cookies, muffins, pies, cakes, creme brulee ....just to name a few. Drop by and discover your favourite.

Linda made these Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins. She used a bundt pan in order to create the

pumpkin-like shape. These muffins, flavoured with pumpkin spice, have a delicious struesel topping which makes them great to serve anytime of the day during the Harvest season. We invite you to make up a batch to share with family and friends

Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar

1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1cup of canned pumpkin

1/2 cup of vegetable oil

2 cups of apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped

1 cup of raisins

Streusel Topping:

1/4 cup of brown sugar

2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

4 tsp. of cold butter

In a bowl, combine the first five ingredients. In another bowl, combine the eggs, pumpkin and oil. Stir into dry ingredients just to moisten. Fold in apples and raisins. Fill in paper-lined muffins cups two-thirds full. In a small bowl, combine sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over batter.

Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Note: If using a bundt pan or unlined muffin tin, make sure to butter inside before pouring in batter.

We plattered up Karen's delicious Pumpkin Cranberry Loaf with Linda's Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins. Karen has been making this loaf for years which has become a family favourite. We included this recipe in our September/October newsletter. But in case you missed it, we are

happy to share it with you again:

Pumpkin Cranberry Loaf

2 cups of all-purpose flour

2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 tsp. of salt

2 tsp. of baking powder

1 3/4 tsp. of pumpkin pie spice

1 cup canned pumpkin

eggs, slightly beaten

1/4 cup of water

1/4 cup of vegetable oil

2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup of coasely chopped fresh or frozen cranberries

1/4 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Preparations: Combine the first 6 ingredients in a large bowl. Combine all wet ingredients and add to dry, stirring till moist.

Fold in cranberries. Pour batter into greased loaf pan. Bake at 350F for 70 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into centre comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes and remove from pan.

Just a reminder to pick up the October issue of Canadian House and Home magazine. This issue profiles the Junior League of Toronto's showhouse tour of the historic McLean House in May.

We were one of 70 designers who were chosen to transform a room in this magnificent Toronto mansion and we are thrilled that our "Her Room with a View" was selected to be featured in this issue!

Happy decorating!

Summer and the Living is Easy

This is the first full weekend of summer and it's time to celebrate fun in the sun with family and friends. We have collaborated with our good friend, Evan Macdonald of the Village Grocer, to bring you a "TASTE OF SUMMER". Our guide is chock full of tips and techniques from chilling to grilling to make summer entertaining easy and breezy. Be sure to drop by The Queensbridge Mill or the Village Grocer to pick up a copy.

Evan Macdonald, KING OF THE GRILL, joined us at our "Backyard Barbeque Bash" cooking class to officiallly launch our entertaining guide, A Taste of Summer. We designed our barbeque menu to start and finish at the grill with easy to make recipes. Evan is pictured here with one of his "grilled to perfection" Sizzling Flank Steaks. These steaks are vacuum sealed in their own marinade ready to grill.



Create real eye appeal on the plate with our Towering Tastes of Summer Vegetables. This unique presentation of grilled vegetables has its flavours inspired by Tuscany. Grilled eggplant, tomato, and zuchinni are layered, topped with goat cheese, garnished with fresh red pepper and basil and drizzled with balsamic viniagrette. Talk about wow factor! This dish just burst with colour and incredible taste sensations to dazzle even the most discerning palate.

Evan grilled up his famous "Fired up" jumbo shrimp which had been soaking in his secret marinade. The Village Grocer prides itself on its selection of high quality fresh fish and seafood. A summertime favourite for the grill is their Atlantic Salmon fresh from Jail Island which is marinated in Orange Ginger or Teriyaki.

We used one of Evan's grilled shrimp to create a cocktail and appetizer all in one. The recipe is known as "Hail Caesar! a la Bell" and comes from the entertaining repetoire of our good friend, Allan Bell. Allan has been catering events to remember for over 20 years. In fact, we just had to devote a section in A Taste of Summer called SUMMER SIPPERS AND FABULOUS DIPPERS to showcase his vast knowledge in creating memorable stress free gatherings.

Every backyard barbeque bash needs a good coleslaw. We just love this tangy version made with red and green cabbage and grated carrot. Not only does it taste fantastic but it looks fabulous on a white platter!

Our grilled fruit kebobs which we glazed with maple syrup makes this a truly Canadian touch to the grand finale of any barbeque. Grilling makes fruit burst with concentrated flavour by caramelizing its natural sugars. Add a flavourful glaze and you're done. How easy and delicious is that! For an added treat, remove the grilled fruit from the skewers and serve on top of waffles warmed on the grill along with scoops of ice cream.

Summer in Canada is short and sweet so we invite you to make the most of it! The key to success at any gathering is to keep it simple, casual and stress-free so you can have fun in the sun with your guests!

Happy Entertaining!

Karen & Linda